Shouldtheynameapro-charterperson thatpersonwouldbeaminorityontheboard. ThebiggestdamagewouldbedoneinTallahasseewherethispersonwouldbebylawallowedtolobby and contradict the rest of the School Board onelegislatoratatime.

22 comments:

I went to vote at the Cutler Ridge library this morning and there was a good crowd and many people were coming as I was leaving. Some younger people, some older people with walkers and canes, a good cross section. I think many people realize that this is a very important election.

Does anyone know if the county fixed that huge voting precinct in West Kendall that had 8,000+ voters in it? If the county did not divide it up, the only hope for a decent voting experience for those voters is to get it done now with early voting. With over 8,000 people in one little place, election day will be chaos.

Academica are private schools for select students run with public school money. And the public schools budgets are shrinking as a result. Public schools continue to take care of ALL students, charter schools do not. Did you know that before the first day of school, kindergarten students are asked to come in for an "assessment" - if your child is found to have special needs, they can be rejected by Academica.In South Miami, the Academica Somerset School weirdly has virtually no African-American students even though it is in a predominanttly African American neighborhood. Why is that?

I will try to respond. It is because of the discipline. Children are taught to respect their teachers and each other. They are taught in ways that prepare them for jobs in the real world. Disrespect towards other students is not tolerated. Foul language is not tolerated. Citizenship and love of their country is taught. Pride in their community is taught. It is very different from what unfortunately prevails in public schools.

Not only are parents taking their children out of public schools and lining up for admittance in charter schools, teachers are fleeing the public school system too. There are waiting lists of teachers applying to work in charter schools.

That's bs about respect for your community blah blah blah. My children go to public school and they are taught to respect other students, the community, teachers. Get over it. The charter school business as practiced by the GOP cabal is big business. The Republican Party way of using tax dollars to personally profit from government while bashing poor people who need food stamps or medical care.

I checked on the number of voters in the voting precincts and the big ones are precinct #304 - Country Village Park with 6,734 voters, #847- Cutler Bay Academy with 6,249 voters, #461 - John A. Ferguson Sr. with 6,097 voters, #100 (unassigned polling location) with 5,522 voters, and #793 Kendall Lakes Branch Library with 5,012 voters in it. As many people as possible who are in those precincts need to go to early voting. There is no telling what the election day voter experience will bring.

Beyond these biggies, there were 61 precincts with between 3,000 and 3,999 voters in them, and 19 with between 4,000 and 4,999 voters in them. These people also should vote early.

Every young person I know is voting for Garcia because the Miami New Times "unendorsed" Curbelo and because we don't need a climate denial, tea-party GOP minion in office. Here's what New Times said about Curbelo. Pass it on:

Curbelo has a lot going for him. He's young and handsome. He's an outsider at a moment when Congress' approval ratings are approaching absolute zero. His very name sounds like it means "spending cuts" in Spanish. And then there is his opponent in the race for Florida's 26th District: Joe Garcia, a one-man political fuck-up machine, like Joe Biden without the charm.

Underneath the pretty political wrapping, however, Curbelo is a disaster. He was first elected to office in 2010, when he won a seat on the Miami-Dade County School Board. A few months later, Rick Scott tapped Curbelo to head his "education transition team," which advised the governor to slash $1.3 billion from the education budget. Teachers were canned. Public schools were shuttered. All the while, funding for charter schools skyrocketed. It's a recipe that Curbelo had also pushed here in Miami-Dade.

But Curbelo's policies go way beyond conservative into cuckoo territory. He has called Medicare and social security "Ponzi schemes." Even stranger is Curbelo's stance on Cuba. Born to exilio parents, Curbelo now wants to crack down on those fleeing the Communist-controlled island, calling on Cuban immigrants to prove that they are fleeing political persecution and not just escaping, you know, soul-crushing poverty.

The biggest reason not to vote for Curbelo, however, is his eerie similarity to the man who used to hold the congressional seat. David Rivera was infamous for his secrecy. He claimed to be a USAID contractor (though the agency had never heard of him) and was eventually charged with 11 ethics violations, including hiding a $1 million casino consulting contract. Rivera is now under investigation for allegedly paying a sham candidate to run against Rep. Joe Garcia in 2012.

Curbelo is at risk of appearing equally shady. His P.R. firm recently copped to representing Roberto and William Isaías, banker brothers who have been convicted of embezzlement in Ecuador. That hasn't stopped Curbelo from setting up meetings between them and members of Congress. And although Curbelo constantly touts his bona fides as a small-business owner, his P.R. firm is actually registered under his wife's name. It's a legal loophole that allows him to avoid disclosing his clients' names.

People have got to start moving into action now. On the Elections Department website they are showing only 59,288 people voting so far in early voting, and they are increasing their numbers about 1,000 more people each day. That is too few. People need to go NOW and vote. The number 1 voting leader is West Dade Regional Library, with 4,325 votes; followed 2nd place North Dade Regional Library, with 4,270 votes, and 3rd place Coral Gables Library, with 3,954. Those numbers need to jump in the next few days.

We have talked enough now. The 'rubber now meets the road'. GO AND VOTE!